On Monday night it was revealed that Burnley had reached an agreement to sign Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford for a fee of up to £19million.
With no senior Premier League or Championship appearances, fans up and down the country were left scratching their heads at how Burnley could justify such a hefty fee for such an inexperienced player.
The move will make the goalkeeper the fourth-most expensive English goalkeeper of all time.
The deal could prove to be a similar story to the one that saw Gavin Bazunu move from City to Southampton last summer. The shot-stopper joined for £12m, failed to announce himself on the big stage, and ended the season on the bench for the league’s bottom side.
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The story for Trafford, however, may be different. At just 20, he is sparkling light among Europe’s elite youngsters in the Under-21 European Championship and has kept four consecutive clean sheets.
Lee Carsley has already commented on the deal and backed Trafford to succeed at Turf Moor.
“It is fair to say that he has been very impressive," he said. “The lads have been very impressed with his level of consistency and I am sure he will have a big future ahead of him.”
Carlsey is definitely right. Consistency is one of Trafford’s key strengths. He conceded just 0.72 goals per game last season and kept 22 clean sheets. He had an average successful save percentage of 78.8, won seven man-of-the-match awards and achieved an average rating of 7.75.
Crucially, he made 1,265 successful passes, proving he will be a success in Vincent Kompany’s team. Ian Evatt, who managed Trafford during his loan spell at Bolton, expected the goalkeeper to be involved for City this campaign.
“We know in the goalkeeping department that we can’t guarantee we will get James again next season," Evatt said of the youngster. “We also don’t know what Manchester City’s plans are, although I understand that next season James will be No.2 at Manchester City.”
For the price Burnley have paid, it is expected that Trafford will fight former City goalkeeper Arijanet Muric for the No.1 shirt.
Despite never having made an appearance in either of England’s top two divisions, he may be starting week in, week out next term.
The pressure is, however, entirely on Trafford. He has to justify a price tag that is higher than what has been paid for Champions League winner Edouard Mendy this summer.
For Burnley and Kompany, it will either prove to be a mindless gamble or a brave investment. They could have signed one of the best goalkeepers in Belgium, Jean Butez, for a quarter of the price.
That being said, Trafford clearly has all the attributes needed to become one of the league’s standout goalkeepers, and it would hurt City to see him thrive in a style of play similar to their own.
